‘Peacekeeper’ Princess Eugenie to bring Prince Harry back into royal fold
While things remain frosty between Prince Harry and his family, one royal is working behind the scenes to broker a reconciliation.
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A royal reconciliation between Prince Harry, Meghan Markle and the Duke of Sussex’s family may be in the works if “peacekeeper” Princess Eugenie has anything to do with it.
The daughter of Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson continues to have a close bond with cousin Prince Harry, and it’s widely speculated that she may have even been the one who introduced him to Meghan with insiders saying she’s “been there from the start”.
Now, according to a report in The Sun, royal sources believe she may even by the one to help the Duke of Sussex reconcile with his family, a relationship which has been famously strained since he moved his family to the US last year.
Princess Eugenie’s relationship with Prince Harry has always been particularly strong – and when he was single – she introduced him to her friends, including his former girlfriend, Cressida Bonas.
The Sussexes have never named who set them up, only saying it was “a friend”.
However, when news that Prince Harry was dating an American actress broke in 2016, Princess Eugenie and her now-husband Jack Brooksbank were with the couple on holiday in Toronto.
The four also double-dated in the early days of Meghan and Prince Harry’s relationship.
And Princess Eugenie has repeatedly shown her support for Meghan.
She is so far the only member of the royal family to back Meghan’s new “40x40 campaign”, launched on the Duchess of Sussex’s birthday this week, and has offered her services as a mentor to help women get back into work.
HARRY ‘ALWAYS’ STAYS WITH EUGENIE
Indeed, Prince Harry has chosen to stay with Princess Eugenie, her husband Jack Brooksbank and their baby August on both of his trips to the UK this year.
The couple live in Frogmore Cottage, which was initially gifted to Prince Harry and Meghan by the Queen when they married in 2018.
When Prince Harry flew back to Britain for his grandfather’s funeral in April, and again for the unveiling of a statue dedicated to Princess Diana in July, he quarantined with the family.
In another move showing how strong the bonds between the two are, Frogmore remains the official UK residence of the Sussexes – but a source claimed Prince Harry and Meghan were “delighted to open up their home” to Princess Eugenie and Jack.
His stays with Princess Eugenie mean she is the family member with whom he has spent the most time face-to-face since moving out of the country last year.
Like the Sussexes, Eugenie and sister Beatrice receive no public funding. Despite that, the sisters routinely attend functions with the Queen, as well as holding down successful careers.
Princess Eugenie is also known to be particularly close to her grandmother, and referred to her late grandfather as a “rock” – fuelling hopes she may be the bridge between the senior royals and the Sussexes.
Her friendship with the Duchess – who she called “dear Meghan” in a birthday post on Instagram this week – is well-documented.
In the Oprah interview, Meghan said: “Eugenie and I had known each other before I had known Harry, so that was comfortable.
“We’re friends with them as a couple.”
And one insider told the Telegraph in the UK: “Eugenie knows them better than any of the royals in a way.
“She was there from the beginning.”
It’s believed that Princess Eugenie has been sympathetic of Prince Harry’s recent interviews in which he damned his family and slammed his “nightmare” life as a senior royal.
That’s despite reports that she was upset when Prince Harry and Meghan announced their pregnancy on Princess Eugenie’s wedding day, and then didn’t stay long at the party.
She and Princess Beatrice are also said to have been left “stunned” by news that their cousin signed a four-book mega-deal – with the first book, a memoir, due to be published in the Queen’s Jubilee year.
Despite those reported reservations, it’s understood their relationship is still strong.
And Meghan and Prince Harry may well be hosted by Princess Eugenie and Jack when they return in 2022 for the celebrations.
Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand, who wrote Finding Freedom on the Sussexes, said: “Out of all the Queen’s grandchildren, Harry and Eugenie have one of the most natural connections.
“Like Harry, Eugenie is loyal, honest and great fun.
“The two had many nights out together in London, sneaking into back entrances of clubs, such as Mahiki, where Jack once was manager, or Tonteria, where in one of the VIP cave areas they downed shots from Mexican skull-shaped glasses and a giant frozen margarita (with multiple straws).”
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